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Inmet Mining Announces 27% Increase to Cobre Panama Copper Reserves

TORONTO, CANADA--(Marketwire - Dec. 13, 2012) - Inmet Mining Corporation (Inmet) (TSX:IMN) is pleased to announce an increase to proven and probable mineral reserves at its 80 percent owned Cobre Panama project. The additional mineral reserves from the Balboa, Brazo and Botija Abajo deposits increase Cobre Panama's total estimated contained copper by 27 percent to approximately 26 billion pounds. Estimated contained gold increases by 41 percent to approximately 7.3 million ounces. The additional mineral reserves have been integrated into a revised mine plan that extends the estimated mine life from 31 to 40 years. A summary of the revised mine plan is attached as Table 3.

The mineral reserve and resource estimates are prepared in accordance with the CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, adopted by CIM Council on November 27, 2010, and the CIM Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines, adopted by CIM Council on November 23, 2003. You will find the definitions and guidelines at www.cim.org.

Mineral resources as at August, 2012, were estimated by Robert Sim, P. Geo., of SIM Geological Inc., a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101. Mineral reserves as at December, 2012 were estimated by William Rose, P.E., of WLR Consulting, Inc., a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101.

Reserve estimates are based on the following assumptions:

-- copper price: US $2.25 per pound -- gold price: US $1,000 per ounce -- silver price: US $16 per ounce -- molybdenum price: US $13.50 per pound -- Mining costs: US $ 1.66 per tonne of ore mined, US $ 1.96 per tonne of waste mined and -- Milling and general and administration cost: US $ 5.27 per tonne of ore milled, average life of mine metallurgical recoveries: 89 percent for copper, 55 percent for gold, 44 percent for silver and 53 percent for molybdenum.

Mineral resources include mineral reserves.

Resource grades are estimated using ordinary kriging with a nominal block size of 25 metres by 25 metres by 15 metres. Resources are limited inside a pit shell defined by a copper price of US $2.60 per pound, $1.75 per tonne mining cost and $7.02 per tonne total site operating cost, and are tabulated at a cut-off grade of 0.15 percent copper.

Securities regulators encourage companies to disclose forward-looking information to help investors understand a company's future prospects. This press release contains forward-looking information. These are "forward-looking" because we have used what we know and expect today to make a statement about the future. Forward-looking statements usually include words such as may, expect, anticipate, and believe or other similar words. Capital and operating cost estimates are forward-looking statements, and are based on assumptions that we believe to be reasonable. However, actual events and results could be substantially different because of the risks and uncertainties associated with our respective business or events that happen after the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

About Inmet

Inmet is a Canadian-based global mining company that produces copper and zinc. We have three mining operations: Cayeli (Turkey), Las Cruces (Spain) and Pyhasalmi (Finland), and own 80% of the Cobre Panama project, currently in construction. This press release is also available at www.inmetmining.com.